CHAPTER XVIII
A HINT AT SOME WELL-KNOWN GAMES, INCLUDING HOP-SCOTCH
During a good deal of world-travelling I cannot recall ever having seen a game of Mumbly Peg played outside of the United States and Canada. I have placed it among the autumn games, but we all know that, except in winter when the conditions are unfavorable, it can be played at any time, where two boys and a jackknife can be a.s.sembled, with reasonably soft, smooth ground on which to play.
This game has so many variations locally and even among individual players that I shall not attempt a detailed description of the many ways in which the blade of the knife is made to enter the ground.
The feats, known to every boy, can be performed alone, and, when a boy, I know I did practice a lot by myself in order to avoid the consequences of defeat.
The rule is for the first boy to take the knife and go through as many feats as he can, but at the first failure the second boy takes the knife and does the same. And when all but one have succeeded, the penalty for failure is as follows:
A wooden peg two inches long is driven into the ground. A little must be left above the earth. The defeated boy has then to seize this with his teeth and draw it out. If he has difficulty in getting hold, the other boys are the more delighted and set up the cry, "Root! Root!"
but this is not fair, and he should not be discouraged.
JACK STONES
is a much older and a more widespread game than mumbly peg. The knuckle bones of sheep and pigs, marbles, pebbles or any other small, heavy objects that can be thrown and grasped, are used. The best are made of iron and are sold cheaply.
Five stones or jacks are necessary for the game, a description of which I shall not attempt, for the feats vary, and the ingenious boy can add to them.
There may be a penalty decided on in the game of jack stones, but it is not usual, and so may be placed among those contests of skill in which success is its own reward.
HOP SCOTCH
is a far more strenuous game than the two just mentioned, nor, when properly played, is it behind them in the skill required. Of course, the best place for all games is out in the open country, but the children in towns and cities do not cease from the play for want of s.p.a.ce.
Except when covered with snow and ice, Hop Scotch courts can be seen chalked out on the sidewalks of all our city blocks. A bit of brick, a flat stone, a sh.e.l.l, the lid of a blacking box, indeed any small object that can be moved by the foot can be used as what is known as the "Potsherd."
After choosing who shall be first, second, etc., the player stands at taw and tosses the potsherd into division number one. Hopping on one foot over the line into number one, and still keeping one foot raised, he makes a hop-kick with the other and sends the potsherd out of the number to that in the right or left section, as may be decided on in advance. There are many local variations of the rules, just as there are variations of the plan of the ground, and perhaps the one you know best is the best.
Hop Scotch may seem simple to those who have never tried it. In truth it is a game which, even in its simplest form, requires much skill and activity. But it is excellent for the muscles of the leg and it cultivates patience and persistency.
RULES
When a player touches his hand or foot to the ground it is called "grounds," and he is out.
When a player pitches the potsherd into the wrong division or on a line, he is out.
When a player kicks into the wrong division or on a line, he is out.
In the next turn he must play from taw. When the turns of the others come they must begin at the division in which they failed.
CHAPTER XIX
HOW TO CAMP OUT--THINGS EVERY CAMPER SHOULD KNOW
Camping out is not in itself a game, but it would be hard to imagine a more delightful way for the boy or the man who has still something of the boy in him to spend a vacation.
Of course, boys in the country have more opportunities to learn about camping than boys living in the city. One thing is that they are more familiar with tools, but city boys are perhaps more eager for the life, as it is so primitive and in such striking contrast to their usual way of living.
Before going into camp there are many things for the camper to learn if he does not know how, and one of these things is how to make a fire. If one has matches, kindling and wood there is no trick in making a camp fire, but there is a good trick in making a fire where there are no matches and the wood is green or wet. Of course, you know that men built fires in houses and camps many, many hundreds of years ago, but you may not know that up to one hundred years ago matches, which are now so cheap and so abundant, were practically unknown. How, then, did they start fires?
Our own Indians get fire--I have seen them do it--by rotating a hard upright stick in a cup-shaped hollow of lighter wood, in which dry charcoal or the fungus-like shavings of punk were placed. Cotton or any other substance that ignites easily would answer as well. This is getting fire by friction.
Every hunter in the West and among the Indians and Mexicans of two continents now carries a flint and steel, and a dry substance to catch and retain the spark. This substance with a full outfit can now be had in most stores that supply sporting goods, and every camper should have a supply.
The back of a jackknife, a bit of flint-like rock, such as quartz, and some very dry cotton lint--kept for protection in a close box--will do just as well as the manufactured outfit, and it can nearly always be had. If you carry half-charred cotton rags in a box or bottle you will find them of use in making fire.
SHELTER
Camps are either temporary, that is changed from day to day, or they are permanent and may be visited year after year, or they may be used for a few weeks at a time. Temporary camps are the ones we are considering, and these can be elaborate or very, very simple. I prefer the latter, and I am sure the boys will agree with me.
During the autumn and when the weather is dry and the nights not too cool, the best way to camp is in the open, sleeping on beds of boughs, about a roaring fire, and with one blanket under and another over.
Small dog tents, such as our soldiers carried in the Civil War, are cheap and very convenient. Each man carried a section, and two made a tent, into which two men crawled when it rained, but in dry weather they preferred to sleep in the open, even when it was freezing.
Shelters of boughs, arranged A fashion from a ridge pole make good temporary shelters and are first rate as wind brakes at night.
If you have to sleep on the ground, you should have a poncho, that is a blanket faced with rubber on one side, to keep the body from too close a contact with the wet earth. The ideal camping place is near a good spring or beside a stream of pure water, in a natural grove with plenty of dry dead wood in the vicinity. The dry wood should be protected from rain if you are camping in the same place for some time.
The camp fire should be made of two thick green sticks or legs to be used as andirons. These should be placed about eighteen inches apart, so as to keep the lighter, dryer fuel off the ground. They will also serve to support the cooking pots. Where stones can be had, they serve well for andirons.
A shack built of crossed logs requires some time to build and some skill to make, but it is not beyond the reach of any boy who has seen --and who has not--an old-fashioned log shanty.
Be sure to select a dry place for your camp, and if you are to stay for any time take care to keep it scrupulously clean, burning every sc.r.a.p that might attract flies or the smaller wild animals, or might make a stench.
Mr. Beard, an authority in such matters, writes:
"Never pitch your tent in a hollow or depression, or you may find yourself in the middle of a pond. Soldiers always dig a ditch around their tents. The floor, which is often your bed, can be covered with straw, if straw is obtainable; if not, fir boughs; these lie flatter than spruce. It is best to lay the foundation of good-sized branches, cover them with smaller ones, and over all place a deep layer of fir twigs broken off the length of your hand and laid shingle-fashion, commencing at the foot of your bed, or the doorway of your shack or tent, each succeeding row of boughs covering the thick ends of the previous row. A properly made bough bed is as comfortable as a mattress, but one in which the ends of the sticks prod your ribs all night is not a couch that tends to make a comfortable night"s rest.
"Candles, lamps and lanterns add to the luggage of a camper and may be dispensed with, yet it often happens that you will need a light at night. If you do, remember that almost any sort of fat or grease will burn with a wick."
Boys from our cities have even a greater desire to get back to the heart of Mother Nature than have country boys, perhaps because they find a greater novelty in the forests, the streams and the untrammelled conditions of our primitive ancestors. But even the boy brought up on the farm heartily enjoys the freedom of the camp, and he takes naturally to all its requirements.
IF LOST
But all boys, even trained foresters, are apt to get lost in strange woods; but no matter the person, it is well to know what to do under such circ.u.mstances. As a rule the denser growth of moss on trees is on the north side. This knowledge may help find the direction; but it is better to carry a small pocket compa.s.s.
When the sky is clear, the sun and the stars help to guide the course, and if followed one is saved from travelling in a circle, as the lost are pretty sure to do in a dense forest.
If twigs are broken from bushes they will serve to show the course to those out searching. A good plan is to follow down the course of a stream, which always flows into a larger body of water and will lead to some abode. If a hill is accessible, the lay of the land may be had from its summit.
In any event, should you be lost, do not get rattled. You will be missed in camp and a search will be made by your friends. If you have to stay in the woods all night, make the best of it. Others have made the best of it by sleeping near the foot of a tree or beside a log. It will be more cheery if you can make a fire without danger to the woods.
THE OUTFIT